"Tch. Such a stingy academy! Isn't knowledge meant for sharing?" Ignoring the ranting elf on his side, Liam gazed at the token in his hand. He did not want to waste it. He looked around the public space and selected a peaceful location in the corner first where he wouldn't be disturbed.
Since he already had the technique in his hand, he did not plan on staying in this place for long. He would first do some basic research on the technique he had acquired, see if he needed anything further for completing the technique and then check out the token area.
If everything worked out well, then he wouldn't have to stay long on this floor. This Spire was a treasure trove that kept on giving and he wanted to push more and more. Starting with this Soul cultivation technique he was going to conquer everything.
With firm determination, Liam settled in a meditative position and closed his eyes. He focused on the abundant information he had received about the new technique.
It took him a few minutes but he was able to quickly summarize the heart of the Myriad Constellations Technique. The whole thing revolved around storing one's soul energy in specific patterns that mimicked the alignment of stars and constellations in the cosmos.
As Liam delved into the technique, the first verse of the Myriad Constellations Technique unfolded before his mind's eye.
"In the vast expanse of the boundless sky, where stars weave the tales of time, align thy soul with the celestial array, and harness the cosmos' sublime rhyme."
Liam wondered if he had to pick a constellation and then mirror his soul according to it. This would be a problem because he had no idea what constellations there were. He had never read anything about this. He also did not understand how this was related to the soul.
Thankfully, it looked like he was wrong because he didn't have to do anything of that sort. Apparently, each soul already had a natural alignment and all one had to do was make the stars and they would automatically, magnetically get fixed in the respective pattern.
The process seemed simple enough. Liam started working on it immediately. It was weird how little he knew about the soul considering that he had spent a lot of time forging them and meddling with them. Well, in all honesty his 'lot of time' wasn't even a drop in the bucket when compared to the general lifespan of beings in the myriad realms. So he did not dare have any egotistical claims about being experienced in this field.
However, he did feel confident in accomplishing at least the first constellation within a day or two. That much was still possible for him.
Liam focused his mind and slowly started gathering his soul energy or rather what was left of it. The initial stage of the Myriad Constellations Technique was akin to laying down the foundation for a grand structure that would be built gradually, piece by piece, star by star.
His injury instantly inflicted a mind-numbing pain on him but it was nothing he wasn't used to. He pushed himself and slowly started pulling in all the tiny little fragments or wisps floating around in his soul space.
This was something he had already tried before and failed. The difference was that now he tried to align these fragments in a specific manner or rather a specific rune. The symbol was called a rune of power and was the very foundation of the Myriad Constellations Technique.
Liam was anxious if this meant he needed to have a deeper understanding of the runes for this method to become successful but it turned out that the skill scroll that imparted the technique to him had already helped him in this aspect.
As he gathered his first minuscule barely stable blob of soul energy, unlike before it did not explode on his face and disperse. Instead, it started circulating along the rune of power. Like current flowing through a circuit, the small piece of his soul started looping on the rune. The energy moved smoothly, with no resistance or leakage. This was the first sign that he was on the right path, a small but significant victory in his journey towards mastering the Myriad Constellations Technique. Liam sucked in a deep breath. He was now more confident than ever. He was going to do this. He was going to achieve this first constellation within a single day or two.
Encouraged by this success, he continued with renewed focus. The pain caused by his soul injury served as a constant reminder of the stakes, and fueled his determination. Every completed circuit of energy within the rune of power seemed to soothe the pain a bit, as if the process of alignment and stabilization was inherently healing.
The technique required him to build multiple runes of power and then connect them in a way that they did not repel each other. Each of these runes formed a star in the array and in the end, the entire array would become stabilized.
It was a huge undertaking and Liam was dealing with it one step at a time. This required not just concentration but a deep, intuitive understanding of the soul's nature. It was as if he was drawing a map of the stars within his very soul, each rune a beacon of light in the darkness.
Hours passed as he meticulously worked on forming the runes, his soul space gradually transforming. The once chaotic and fragmented energy began to show signs of order and harmony. The pain from his injury lessened with each successful alignment, replaced by a sense of wholeness he hadn't felt since before his injury.
He was definitely weaker. Sure. The injured parts of his soul were yet to heal but at least now they were not floating around like shredded waste. They were slowly starting to tie together. He was forcefully stitching them together by bringing them to the rune of power.